It was around today's date in 2019 that news stories started filtering through showing weird happenings in Wuhan. People in apartments that were being bricked up to stop them leaving, hazmat suits, corridors of hospitals overflowing with people struggling to breath and more. It was the start of the Covid pandemic and it changed... well... everything. Today we are going to look at what happened here in Valencia in terms of property from late 2019. What Covid meant for the property market, society and in other ways. Because if you're looking at living in or buying or renting in Valencia, or anywhere in Spain and possibly everywhere worldwide, the market you're stepping into today looks very different from the one that existed in early 2020. Not just different in prices (though yes, those have gone up), but fundamentally different in how people buy, what they're looking for, and how the whole process works.
Let's walk through what's actually changed over the past six years, because if you're moving to Valencia from abroad, understanding these shifts will help you make better decisions.
The Price Reality
First, the numbers everyone wants to know: Spanish property prices dipped briefly during the pandemic lockdowns, then came roaring back. We're now above the 2007 peaks, with average prices sitting around €2,150 per square metre nationally in 2025, and we've seen cumulative growth of 15-30% just in the last two years depending on where you find yourself in Spain. In the bigger cities those numbers per m2 are a lot higher but remember we don't just measure property by m2 now, as you will see below, lifestyle per m2 is more important. The chart below shows the average prices per m2 in Valencia compared with Madrid and Barcelona along with the Spain average (Prices sourced via Idealista asking prices) As you can see Valencia remains far below the average prices in Spain's main two cities but is edging further away from the national average price.
Here's what matters more than national averages though: the market is incredibly active especially in the big cities. Spain is seeing somewhere between 745,000 and 800,000 property sales a year, touching record levels. That tells you this isn't a stagnant or frozen market – it's liquid, it's moving, and people are buying despite the higher prices. Why are they doing that? Well, read on but here's one reason.
Even at it's highest point in 2023 after the ECB rate hikes due to the rising cost of living post Covid and the fuel rises due to the invasion of Ukraine, fixed interest rates peaked at just 4.1% but... that means people were paying around 3.1% on average due to bonuses and the like. You can see how these rates affected sales completions below.
Compare that with the numbers from Valencia.
The decline since 2022 is because of one factor only, lack of supply. (Remember the figures for 2025 are just for the first two quarters but they show a similar number of transactions to last year per quarter). The supply issues can be seen below from 2019 onwards.
The interest rate rises in 2023 reduced demand a bit but things have come back as interest rates have started to fall back again. Mortgages being given out now are around 3% meaning an actual payment of around 2% after bonuses, or as our American clients call it "Free money!!" Last week we had a client approved at 1.9% interest rate for 60% LTV over 25 years. this essentially means they will pay 2000 Euros per month on an 830k purchase.
Here's what that means for repayments.
But also, don't forget the rental market. This has tightened even more dramatically. Since 2020, the supply of long-term rentals has fallen by over 60% on major portals, whilst advertised rents have jumped between 30%-100% nationwide. In cities like Valencia and tourist-heavy areas, the pressure is at its strongest. This combination of fewer properties available and higher rents has made housing affordability one of Spain's biggest political issues right now.
What People Actually Want Now
Covid didn't just pause the market for a few months – it permanently changed what buyers are looking for.
The desire for space, natural light, terraces, and access to green areas went from "nice to have" to "essential" for many people. Normalisation of teleworking in the years post Covid made living further from city centres or even from different countries possible, and that shift has stuck. We've seen stronger price growth in suburban and peripheral areas around major cities as Spanish people trade central locations for larger homes and better quality of life, while demand in the major conurbations rises due to those moving to these places from all around the World and more remote parts of the country itself.
There's also been a rebalancing in what people buy. The classic holiday apartment investment has softened somewhat, whilst demand for primary residences and "second homes that we'll actually use regularly" has strengthened. The use of the Schengen visa and the 90 day window to work, rest and play remotely has increased massively bringing a new market into play, the medium term rental. Investors are increasingly focused on buy-to-rent projects and residential assets, as some commercial property – traditional offices outside of prime areas, some retail spaces etc... – adjusted to new working and shopping patterns.
How You'll Actually Buy (Much More Digital Than Before)
In 2019, buying a property in Spain meant flying over, doing viewings in person, handling most paperwork face-to-face. By 2021–2022, the industry had shifted to routine use of virtual tours, 3D walkthroughs, video calls, and remote reservation systems. And that's stuck.
International buyers especially now expect, and at Valencia Property we provide it, high-quality digital materials that let you shortlist properties, negotiate, and even commit before you've set foot in Spain. You'll still want to visit before finalising (we always recommend it but we have closed many sales via video calls, usually from those who have previously visited so we know exactly what will work for them, and a plethora of information arriving at the client remotely), but the initial stages are far more efficient now.
On the legal side, Spain has moved towards partial digitalisation of the Notary's work. Law 11/2023 allows certain notarial acts to be done by videoconference, and remote notarisation platforms have become much more common since 2020 though the visit to the notary is still the norm in 95% of cases. This makes handling powers of attorney and company transactions easier without in-person visits. Mortgage and banking processes are also much more digital – online documentation upload, video identification, hybrid in-branch and online processing and the change from a bank draft being the major method of payment to OMF immediate transfers ordered from the Notary's office via a simple phone call to your bank branch.
None of this means the process is entirely remote or that you should skip proper due diligence, but it does mean the mechanics are smoother and faster than they were six years ago.
What's Changed in How People Think?
Buyers today are more conscious of lifestyle factors, work-from-home suitability and energy efficiency than they used to be. The pure "price per square metre" calculation matters less; quality of life, stable neighbourhood services, and connectivity matter more. A home for modern living because it ticks all of the boxes required is the norm. Sometimes this means that the price per m2 is very high because the property just ticks all of the boxes in terms of lifestyle and if your only criteria for buying is the m2 price then certain prices can look ridiculous and people on Facebook can get very angry. Later this week on the substack we are going to have a rant about this so subscribe over there.
Nevertheless, high prices have made first-time buyers more cautious and selective but low interest rates and fixed rate mortgages mean the costs associated with buying higher priced properties have dropped and mean that owning with a mortgage is usually much cheaper than renting. You do however need to have a lump sum ready to buy and that lump sum keeps increasing meaning more households in long-term rentals by necessity rather than desire, which feeds back into that rental supply crunch we mentioned earlier.
Sellers often have expectations anchored to post-Covid price strength, "number goes up", which can lead to slower adjustment on asking prices even in micro-markets if or when demand cools. And lenders and institutional investors now treat residential property as a relatively solid investment after seeing how quickly transactions recovered post-lockdown. They are factoring teleworking and demographic shifts explicitly into their strategies now and buying properties to rent out long or medium term.
The Political Side (Which Affects You Whether You Like It Or Not)
The pandemic amplified Spain's pre-existing housing affordability problems. Covid hit low-income renters hardest and made overcrowding, insecure tenancies, and housing gaps for essential workers much more visible.
In response, national and regional governments rolled out tenant protections during the crisis and have since moved towards stronger regulatory intervention. This includes rent-control mechanisms in "stressed areas" and expanded public or below-market rental programmes though they are slow to have any discernible effect on the markets.
The concern among economists and industry analysts is that strict rent controls and regulatory uncertainty might reduce private rental supply and ultimately drive further price pressure, especially where new construction isn't keeping pace with demand. Currently this seems to be happening. We wrote a few weeks ago about why you can't buy that empty property and that situation will remain in place for some time.
You don't need to have strong political views on any of this (Isn't it unusual for me to say that!) but you do need to understand it because it affects rental yields, rental availability, and the overall regulatory environment you're operating in and it affects the atmosphere of the areas you are buying into.
Bottom line: the Spanish property market you're looking at in 2025 is structurally tighter, more digital, more spatially dispersed, more in-demand and more politically contested than it was in 2019.
For international buyers coming to Valencia specifically, here are the key considerations:
What This Means If You're Moving to Valencia
Key considerations for international buyers in Spain's post-Covid property market
| Key Point | What You Need to Know |
|---|---|
| Competitive Market | Be prepared for a competitive market – especially for quality properties in desirable areas. The high transaction volumes tell you there are plenty of buyers out there. If something is good you are not the only one looking at it and it will sell quickly, especially in the city. You need to have everything ready. We can help you achieve that |
| What You Actually Need | Think carefully about what you actually need – not just square metres, but lifestyle, connectivity, outdoor space. The market has shifted to take these things more into account. |
| Digital Process | Embrace the digital process – but still do your due diligence and visit before finalising. The technology makes it easier, not less important. |
| Rental Landscape | Understand the rental landscape – if you're planning to rent out part-time or generate income, know that the regulatory environment is evolving and rental supply is tight. As we often say everything rents but you need to be careful. |
| Price Expectations | Don't assume price corrections are coming – they may well do, but the underlying dynamics (limited supply, high transaction volumes, competitive offers, demographic shifts and low interest rates) suggest the market has extremely strong structural support. |
We've been in Valencia's property market for over a quarter of a century, yes, we are ancient, and the changes since Covid are the most significant we've seen, we'd say even more far reaching that those changes post the 2008 financial crisis. The fundamentals are different now. The rich have got richer due to almost uncontrolled printing of money by central banks and that money didn't trickle down, it never does, it worked its way up into the hands of the rich, the oligarchs, the politically connected and the corrupt. These groups are buying assets with that money and assets mean competition for property the world over which pushes up prices. And they're not the only ones. You are now competing against Blackrock and many other funds moving into the housing market. If you're thinking about making the move, we're here to help you navigate what that actually means for your specific situation – no sales pitch, just straight answers based on what we're seeing on the ground every day.
Want to discuss your plans for Valencia? Get in touch and we'll have an honest conversation about what makes sense for you. And if you want to give us more information about what you are looking for and start working with us now then fill in the form below and we will start the process.
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Then as usual here are some more suggestions from our extensive back catalogue of blog posts, our social feeds and properties for you to look at. Make sure to click through on the images to be taken to the stories and more.
This week we had two Spanish holidays and everyone in Spain complained because of the days they fell on. The Puente de la Constitución combines two holidays on the 6th and 8th of December, you know, the month we definitely need more holidays! buff.ly/UDrnVhy
— Graham Hunt (@grahunt.bsky.social) December 13, 2025 at 10:01 AM
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Sometimes you see a property and you know it just ticks all of the boxes. It's in the right place, at the right price being sold for the right reasons and it just feels right. This could well be one of those. buff.ly/VdXnRGK
— Graham Hunt (@grahunt.bsky.social) December 12, 2025 at 10:26 AM
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Over on the Stepping Stone rentals Blog Isabella wrote about Xmas traditions in Valencia. Take a look.
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Welcome to the second edition of our Spotlight segment, a series that takes you behind the rental listing and gives you a feel for what it’s really like to call our Stepping Stone home, as well as some further details about the neighbourhoods. In true Stepping Stones style, we’ll also include any little gripes or quirks so you know exactly what to expect.
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